Spectral Affair
by MintiNeko
Summary: My name is Sakura Haruno, and my dead crush's ghost keeps following me around. And no, he doesn't want closure. He wants to come back. AU. SasuSaku. Hiatus.
1. A Deal with Death

A/N: Here is a little project I've been itching to write. It's AU, obviously, and it might seem a little weird, but I rather like it.

**Disclaimer:** I will never own Naruto, maybe just the manga volumes

* * *

I'm being stalked by my dead crush.

Stop laughing, I'm not kidding.

His name is Sasuke Uchiha, he is one of the best looking boys in this universe, utterly brilliant, and he was killed last year by a drunk driver.

Which is why I cannot comprehend why he is in front of me, looking very solid, and _in my room_.

-

See, I had thought the day had started out strangely, you know, with thinking that you're late when you're not, the feeling at the back of your head that someone's following you, and a test you didn't prepare for but somehow still know the answers to when you probably shouldn't. Then for some reason when I went to Tsunade's office to pick up some books, Tonton started squealing like crazy and refused to come near me, even though I've had to occasionally fight her off with a stick before.

I had thought _that_ was strange, but it's nothing compared to opening the door to my dorm and having someone already be in there.

A _should-be dead _someone.

"I'm definitely hallucinating," I said aloud, trying to convince myself that I wasn't seeing _the_ Sasuke Uchiha (who is supposed to be six feet under) staring at me.

I was a little surprised that I hadn't screamed, fainted, or thrown something at him. I'm not generally levelheaded to begin with, so it didn't really make sense why I wasn't going into hysterics over, if not a dead guy, then a stranger that somehow broke into my room.

"No, actually, you're not, Sakura." He corrected me in that all too-familiar voice, smirking a little at the (probably) stupid expression on my face. He was relaxing on my bed, hands interlocked and resting behind his head.

Quickly, I checked over my shoulder to see if anyone was in the hall, and closed and locked the door behind me. I wasn't sure exactly what was going on, but it was going to need a little privacy.

Turning back to Sasuke, I took in his appearance. He was still wearing the clothes he had been buried in: neat button down red shirt, black jeans, black shoes. The black coat and tie he had also been wearing were discarded carelessly on my desk. I touched the garments tentatively, feeling the fabric between my fingers. So either he _was,_ somehow, actually here…or someone I don't know somehow got into my dorm and forgot their dress clothes.

Somewhat understandably (or not), I prefer the former.

However, that doesn't mean I'll be reasonable about it.

"How can I not be? Admittedly, hallucinating a year after the death of a close friend is not natural, but maybe I am experiencing some rarely documented case—" My confusion had finally turned into mild hysteria and I began rambling as my brain tried to process the information.

"Sakura, shut up."

My mouth automatically snapped shut. It appeared that even in a (not very) spectral form; Sasuke still had influence over me.

"Thank you, now let me explain." He slid off the mattress, leaving no indication that he had been laying on it, and came up to me. I had to crane my neck to look up at him. Despite having been dead, he had still somehow managed to grow a few inches, even when I hadn't.

(Dammit.)

"First off, I am not an illusion, even if I am dead." He clapped a hand over my mouth before I could question him. Though I probably could have spoken anyway, I kept quiet, disturbed by how I could feel his hand covering my mouth, but the touch was so _light_, insubstantial, almost not there.

"Second," he continued, removing his hand from my mouth when he thought I wouldn't interrupt him, "I'm not exactly a ghost. I'm a bit more like a poltergeist. I can touch objects and people, but they can't necessarily touch _me_." He laid a hand on my shoulder, just brushing the nape of my neck, and again I felt that odd, light touch. "Do you understand me?"

I nodded a little, his explanation made sense. Briefly I wondered if someone was playing some cruel prank, but quickly brushed off the thought. It was unlikely to be some elaborate joke. Sasuke had been too popular, too greatly mourned to be 'brought back' for a stupid prank.

I refocused my attention on him to show I was listening and tried not to think too hard about the hand still on my neck, hoping that he couldn't feel changes in body temperature.

"Good. And third," Here he hesitated a little, "I'm here because I need your help."

I will admit that, strange as it seems, I was expecting something like this. I mean, ghosts (or poltergeists or whatever the hell he was) didn't exactly come down from heaven just for tea and cookies. And Sasuke himself wasn't the sort of person to want any extra attention in life, and I doubted that would change beyond the grave.

"Help with what? If it has anything to do with telling your loved ones to 'move on' or anything like that I don't think I have the tact—"

"It's not that," he cut in, sounding faintly annoyed, more like his normal self. He took a deep breath before continuing.

"I made a deal with Death. If I am successful with my goal by the time my seventeenth birthday comes around, Death will give my life back to me. And I'm going to need your help." He looked directly at me, never once breaking eye contact.

My mouth dropped open. I probably resembled a fish, but at that particular moment I didn't care.

"W-what?" I stuttered, wondering if I had heard him right. Sasuke let out an exasperated sigh. The hand on my neck must have tightened, because the pressure became a little heavier.

"You heard me. I said that—"

"No, I heard you," I cut him off, my mind immediately refocusing on my hallucination theory. "But this—this defies all logic. You're here. I accept that. I'm _glad_ about that. But to think that you cut a deal with _Death_—himself? Or is it 'herself'?" It was silly to wonder about how to refer to a God-thing, but I can be nitpicky that way.

"I can't really tell." He said, serious expression vanished, replaced with a more sheepish look, "It sounded male, but…"

"It looked like a girl?" I supplied, trying to be helpful.

"Among other things. But that's not the point."

"I know." A new thought struck me, "But why do you need my help? Why not get Naruto's help, or even your parents? They're closer to you than I've ever been." I flopped onto the bed Sasuke had abandoned, crossing my legs together. Sasuke simply waited for me to stop fidgeting before explaining.

"I doubt my parents would believe that their son has a chance to permanently come back from the dead;" he said firmly, "And Naruto, while he probably would believe me if I tried haunting him for long enough, would _also_ try to do something stupid, without a doubt."

I winced; that scenario _would_ be very likely.

"And Itachi?" I inquired.

The glare he gave me made me shrink away from him.

"You know perfectly well we don't get along, and I am not about to trust _him_ with my life." He snapped, "Never did in the figurative sense, won't in the literal sense." He huffed and crossed his arms, irked.

"Well, then why ask me?" I asked, once he had seemed to have calmed down a bit. He relaxed a little and uncrossed his arms, sitting back down on my bed without any suggestion of extra weight on the mattress.

"It's complicated."

"I'm pretty sure I'll be able to handle it." I tilted my head to one side, "Tell me."

For nearly a minute he didn't speak, his face thoughtful.

"For the most common reason," he said finally, "You were picked because you are close enough to me that my coming back is something that you want, and I think you're smart enough to help me figure this out. I won't say anymore." He looked at me expectantly, "What do you say. Will you help me?"

It hurt a little, the fact that his only reason for coming to me was to have me help him. But I'm no fool, for the most part. If helping him meant that he would come back, why would I refuse him?

"All right, what do I have to do?" I looked him directly in the eye, mentally resigning myself to what would undoubtedly be a long period of emotional tumult.

He smiled, much to my surprise. In life, his smiles were always were rare and few and far between. After death, I had somehow doubted that he would ever make a single positive facial expression again.

"Nothing much. You just need to sign the contract."

Should have known there would be a catch.

-

"_This_ is the contract?!"

I stared incredulously at the fat scroll Sasuke had conjured and was offering to me. Not only was it written in some elaborate, barely discernable script, but the writing was _tiny_.

"Yes, now I'll need you to sign here at the bottom once you're done reading it." He unrolled it, the paper unwinding all the way down to the floor and then some.

I didn't move to take it from him.

"Sasuke, I agreed to help you; but this is insane! I can barely read this." I scanned the script, catching words and phrases but nothing to string together coherently. I glared at him. "There aren't any traps in here, are there?"

"Nothing dangerous, I assure you." Sasuke's mouth twitched up again into a small smile, but disappeared so quickly I thought I was just seeing things.

"You sure?" I attempted to stare him down, forgetting the fact he would obviously win because he didn't have to blink.

"Sakura, I can promise you that you won't get bodily hurt if you sign the damn thing."

It was obvious that, despite a year of being dead, Sasuke had not gotten any more patient.

"What about emotional hurts?" I asked suspiciously. Sasuke winced, as though he had hoped I wouldn't remember.

"…If we succeed, there shouldn't be." He answered, his words sure of themselves, though where it was it real or a show I didn't know. But it was Sasuke, and he really had no reason to trick me, especially now he was dead, so I skimmed the document best I could, then picked up the pen nearest to me and signed my name at the bottom.

The second I set down my pen, a man appeared in my room. At least, I think it was a man; it was hard to tell under the cloak and dark clothing.

"Sakura, this is one of Death's messengers," Sasuke, as usual, seemed completely unfazed. "He'd like the contract, if you would just give it to him."

The messenger nodded and held out a wrinkled hand expectantly. Trying to contain my shock (somehow I had managed not to scream), I rolled up the scroll and handed it to him, trying to get a better look at the shadowed face which I could have _sworn_ I had seen somewhere before. He didn't give me a chance, vanishing the instant the scroll entered his grasp.

"Is this sort of thing going to happen often?" I asked. Sasuke shook his head and turned to a shelf tacked above my bed, examining its contents.

Not comfortable with the sudden silence, I asked a second question, "What are we going to do now?"

"Nothing today, exactly." Sasuke didn't turn around to speak to me, "We have plenty of time, we'll start when we want to."

I stared at him, wondering if being dead had addled his sense of time. If I was the dead one, I would be itching to find a way to come back to life as quickly as possible.

But oh well. All I knew what that it was Sasuke, and he would do what he needed to do when he was ready.

-

Seeing as I couldn't do much else, I fetched my book bag (which had been forgotten the second I had seen Sasuke) and started on my homework right there on my bed. I didn't look up, but occasionally I could see Sasuke walk in my range of sight, apparently exploring my room for any new changes. It was maddening not to be able to hear him moving around, and more than a little creepy.

Especially when I looked up to find him reading over, or rather, _through _(his head was sticking out of my blazer) my shoulder!

"Sasuke-kun! What are you doing?" There was an odd tingling sensation in my shoulder now, which I assumed came from Sasuke's form passing through me.

Sasuke (or rather his head) turned to face me, a little too close for comfort of any kind.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" he demanded. "Your fourth answer's wrong, by the way."

I stared at him. "No it's not."

"Yes, it is. You swapped the wrong variables." He pointed, and I shuddered when his arm passed through mine.

"Sasuke-kun; you're dead, and you've never taken this course. Do you really expect me to believe you?" I glared at him, a little irritated.

"Yes."

"Ha, ha. No." He was staring at me with the familiar petulant-slash-superior expression on his pretty face, and already I could feel myself starting to blush. Considering that he had almost always been untouchable to me, I guess him being a ghost didn't really affect my hormones any differently.

"Fine. Do it your way." He got off of the bed and stood in the center of the floor. "Does Naruto still have the same dorm?"

"Yeah."

"Good." Without another word he turned and left _through_ the wall. I mentally sighed, knowing that I would have to get used to that and get used to it fast, if I wanted to keep his cover.

A few more questions began to pop up in my head, as I worked on my homework. Would Sasuke come with me everywhere? How was I going to talk to him, since it was pretty obvious no one else would probably see him, without looking crazy? Where would he stay at night? My _room_?

Most importantly: What the hell was his bet _about_!?

This was _not_ going to be easy.

* * *

A/N: Well, that's chapter one!

Sorry if anything seems vague right now: all will be revealed eventually.

Also sorry if anyone here is watching Breaking the Glass Ceiling, I got writer's block _bad_. Hopefully I'll figure myself out soon.

Now, I really want to see what people think about this story, which has been brewing for a little while, so please review!


	2. Death is a Blast

Woah! Thanks to everyone who reviewed for the last chapter! I honestly didn't expect that many people to actually be interested in this story, but I'm glad you were.

So here's the next chapter for you all!

* * *

I should probably say something about Sasuke's relationship with me before he died.

When we were in middle school, I had a huge crush on him. I was a fangirl; I admit it. I stalked him, demanded dates, tackled him, and basically scarred the boy for life.

I grew out of that stage, eventually, and stopped pestering him so much. However, it wasn't until sophomore year that we began to actually talk to one another, rather than the occasional sporadic comment or me just ogling him.

We ended up becoming good friends. Naruto, as I've mentioned before, was (well technically, still _is_) Sasuke's best friend and he became my friend as well. He liked to tease us about being a couple, though he usually kept himself from going too far, especially after a couple of…incidents that ended pretty badly for him.

But even after we became friends, I always liked Sasuke. No matter what I did, it never went away. I had just been gathering courage to get the awkwardness out of me to just ask him on a date around the time he was killed.

So understandably, I was thrilled and terrified to see him again. Thrilled for obvious reasons, terrified that he would leave be again.

But one must learn to be practical about such things, and though I wasn't yet, I was certainly going to try.

-

When I woke up the morning after Sasuke had appeared in my room, I thought for one crazy moment it had all been a dream. I mean, my total lack of reaction to Sasuke being a ghost and all that strangeness and his HEAD STICKING OUT OF ME clearly fell into Category One dream behavior, right?

Wrong.

The first thing that reminded me that Uchiha Sasuke was back and a ghost was turning onto my back and looking up at the ceiling.

Only to find it blocked by a hovering Sasuke, stretched full out above me, arms crossed and a scowling face only a few inches from mine.

"Good, you're awake. Now get up."

So I did what any normal person would've done in my situation, and what I probably should've done the day before.

"EEEEEEEEEEKK!"

I screamed.

Sasuke swore and fell out of the air and to the floor. Getting over my shock, I crawled to the foot of my bed and peered over the edge, half-expecting to see Sasuke sprawled out on the floor, possibly muttering obscenities.

Nothing but worn carpet.

Oo-kay.

Before I could think to do anything else, there was a loud pounding on my door. I eyed it cautiously.

"Who is it?"

"Me, Forehead Girl! Who else would it be, _Gai_?!" I relaxed at the sound of my best (and worst) friend's distinctive voice.

Ino Yamanaka. Blonde, blue-eyed, beautiful, and above all, bossy.

(Actually, I lied.

Above all, she's very, very loud.

But I love her anyway.)

"You could've fooled me," I called back, sliding off the bed and going to the door and opening it.

"I'm going to ignore that." Ino, managing to somehow look immaculate despite the stupidly early hour, scanned my room suspiciously. "I thought I heard screaming. You okay?"

"I'm fine." I assured her. "I just got a nasty shock—out of my dream and into reality." I hastily added on when she gave me a look that said she wasn't buying it. Her eyes slid to somewhere behind me, and the psychotic smile I've learned means trouble spread across her face.

"Oh Sa-ku-ra…"

And there is the creepy breaking-up-of-my-name that really means trouble for me.

"What?" I snapped, not really ready to be faced with trouble so early in the day.

"I didn't know you've been having a midnight visitor!" Ino cut past me, heading right to my…

Desk. Where I had left Sasuke's stupid _coat_.

Crap.

"Well?" prodded Ino, picking up the incriminating garment and shaking it at me, smirking evilly.

"Don't make assumptions, Ino-pig." I grumbled, snatching the coat out of her grasp. "Someone left it in the hall and it was late and I was going to take it to the _lost and found_ today, so don't go all smug on me. No guy snuck into my room, _thankyouverymuch_."

Technically, I wasn't lying.

Sasuke didn't sneak in; he walked through the wall.

Or so he had told me.

"Please," Ino rolled her eyes. "You expect me to believe that flimsy excuse?"

"Yep, 'cause that's all you're getting."

"And this hypothetical stripper also left his tie in the hall?" She picked up the red strip of fabric and studied it. "Real nice material too…just a little too nice to leave lying on the ground of their dorm."

"…" I kept silent, not really trusting myself to be able to make up anything with more sense.

"Fine, don't tell me." She dropped the subject, for which I'm intensely grateful. "I'll figure it out eventually. But anyway, it's Saturday, anything you want to do?"

I shook my head. "Nah. Not really." Behind her I could see Sasuke rising out from the floor, looking mildly tortured. "Just go have fun with Shikamaru." Shikamaru Nara is Ino's sort-of boyfriend. Which basically means that she's declared him to be hers, but he just doesn't know it yet, and she's in the process of enlightening him.

"I'll try. But he can be awfully stubborn." She sighed dramatically, then grinned, her eyes glinting mischievously. "You better tell me about the fun with your mystery man!" She dodged the hair clamp projectile I had aimed at her head and ran from my room, laughing. I closed and locked the door after her, then turned to face Sasuke, who had been waiting impatiently for Ino to leave. Apparently, a year away from her had not improved his opinion of her.

"So you really are a ghost?" I asked him, just to make sure.

"Obviously." He gave me one of those are-you-stupid looks, which as a good friend, I completely ignored.

"Just checking," I went over to my desk. "Then how are these real?" I pointed at his oh-so-expensive coat and tie.

"I don't know." He shrugged. "I guess my corpse isn't wearing them anymore." I winced at his bluntness, not really want to think of him as rotting or decomposing or...

Well, ew.

"Huh, that's strange."

"You're helping a ghost. That's weirder."

"Yeah, yeah. I need to get ready." I began to rummage through the drawers of my dresser, picking out the clothes I wanted to wear for today.

"For what?"

"It's Saturday." I reminded him, dumping my clothes on the bed and heading for the door.

"So?" He followed me as I left the room and headed down the hall, ignoring anyone who happened to walk through him. I was the one who flinched every time it happened; seeing a girl stick any body part (however unintentionally) through Sasuke was just too creepy.

"We need to help you win your bet, right?" I smiled at him when he nodded. "Well, we're going to need to do a little _research_ before we start."

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Sasuke asked, narrowing his eyes at me.

"Because you're a pessimistic emo." I retorted.

We reached the girls' showers. "Wait out here and don't even _think_ of stepping into the girls' shower." I instructed, ignoring the aggravated look on his face. "If you do, I promise I'll find something incredibly painful to hurt you with."

"Who do you take me for, _Jiraiya_?" He demanded, sounding both annoyed and faintly creeped out.

"No, but—ugh." I shuddered at the idea of a ghostly Jiraiya that could walk through walls. "Just don't do anything stupid."

"I'm dead. What worse could I possibly do?"

"Right," I muttered darkly as I left him standing in the hallway. "I can think of a few things."

-

**First Order of Business:** Find out what I can from Sasuke about ghosts and dying.

By nature, I'm a pretty curious person, and ask questions about anything I don't really understand. Considering that I hadn't known that ghosts had existed until yesterday, it meant a lot of questions for Sasuke, because—really.

Who else would know what the afterlife is like?

"Sasuke-kun, what was it like before you…came back?"

"Boring."

I rolled my eyes and continued to search the shelves of the Konoha Library for research material. Despite our principal, Tsunade's, insistence that it's a purely academic library, if you know where to look—you can find some, er, _interesting_ books.

(Including the stash of Icha Icha books Kakashi managed to somehow slip in here, yuck.)

The section detailing the supernatural was a decent size, but on the lower shelves, so I was forced to crouch with very little dignity as I searched for books detailing the different kinds of ghosts. Sasuke walked (not _really_, but that's the best I can describe it) besides me, hands in pockets, looking around with interest.

"You know, you could be a little more specific," I muttered under my breath, not saying his name for fear that someone might hear me and well…

Considering my history with Sasuke, it wouldn't do well for my reputation to be holding a conversation using his name with thin air.

"After all," I continued, "everyone wants to know what the afterlife is like. And who better to ask than a ghost?"

"An angel. Besides, I was never actually in Heaven _or_ Hell."

I looked up at him, confused. "You weren't?"

Sasuke let out a sigh before explaining. "Heaven and Hell are only reserved for those who have accepted their deaths. Ghosts by _definition_ don't. I argued when I died—and the person judging me got so annoyed he threw me out."

"Threw you out where?"

"To wander around Earth as a ghost until Death could deal with me." He scowled. "Why else do you think it took a year for me to show up?"

"Do you really expect me to answer that?" I was a little preoccupied with lifting an especially large, but not heavy, book from the bottom shelf to really answer.

(School's weird. Nearly all the "fun" stuff, no matter their size, is light.

Conversely, all textbooks, no matter their size, are freaking heavy.)

"No. Why do you want all these books on ghosts, anyway?" I turned halfway to look up at him. He stared steadily back, still looking for the entire world completely and perfectly normal and solid.

And handsome, unfortunately. Very, very handsome. I could feel my face heat up from seeing how intense his gaze could be—and he wasn't even trying.

"Because I need to know my subject, and it's pretty obvious that's you're not going to answer my every question." Holding the stack in my arms very carefully, I made my way to the librarian's desk to have them checked out.

"You've never let that stop you before." He pointed out, leaning against the desk. I half-wondered why he wasn't sliding through, and even more irrationally, if ghost-clothing even wrinkled.

"Well, before I could hold onto you when I wanted a question answered. Now, you have an advantage against that: you're dead."

"I'm dead?" I jumped at an accusing voice from behind me. Judging from the evil smirk on Sasuke's face, I had been just a _little too loud_ on that last bit.

Plastering a large grin on my face, I slowly swiveled around to face whomever I offended. It was some freshman, who looked rather wary.

"Not talking to you, kid."

"Then who were you talking to?" He asked, still accusing, and very annoying.

"My invisible boyfriend." I took great satisfaction from watching, from the corner of my eye, Sasuke fall through the desk and pop back up, glowering at me.

"Why?" I raised an eyebrow; was this kid for real?

"No reason. So just forget it." I snatched my books off the desk and left as quickly as I could without being obvious that I was trying to get away.

"See, Sakura—this is why people think you're insane. You talk to yourself too much." Apparently forgetting his slip up, Sasuke easily kept up with me, much to my irritation.

"Shut up, bastard." I turned to glower at him—only to find that he wasn't there. But from the sudden uncontrollable shuddering that passed through my body, and the coolness, I knew he had passed through me.

"I'm on your _other_ side, idiot." I could practically feel his smirk.

Sasuke seemed to be having…fun, being dead.

-

"First things first: we need to find out what kind of a ghost you are." I opened one of the books in my lap, trying to ignore how Sasuke was hovering just to my right, looking over my shoulder. "I already have a good idea, considering—"

"Why?"

"Why…what?"

"What's the point of knowing what kind of ghost I am?"

"Well, Sasuke-kun, we need to have you win your bet, which you still to tell me about—"

"I'll tell you later," he cut me off impatiently. "Again, what's the point of this?"

Irritated by his interruption but determined to keep it from showing, I continued. "Well, there are different kinds of ghosts. Right?"

He nodded, albeit reluctantly, in confirmation.

"Different ghosts would have different rules, right?"

"Hn."

"I'll just take that as a 'yes'. So, again, do you have any idea what kind of ghost you are?"

"Again, why does it matter?"

"It matters in the way that contract mattered. If we know any possible conditions you're under that could be a problem later, we could avoid them. Got it?"

"Hn." He shrugged.

"Again, I'll take that as a yes. Now," I scanned the page the book was open to, "in all likelihood, you're a Gjenganger—"

"A _what_?"

"Sasuke-kun, please stop interrupting. Anyway, a Gjenganger is a ghost that returns from the afterlife because for some reason, it cannot rest in peace—"

"I am _not_ an it—"

"I'm being general here, Sasuke-kun. And stop acting so silly." Sasuke rolled his eyes at the word; I tried again to ignore him. "But Gjengangers need to seek help from someone alive to help them rest in peace, and they look perfectly normal, the way you do right now—"

"Ah, but I want to come back to life, not rest in peace—"

"Okay, now you're just trying annoy me." He merely smirked in response. I groaned and rolled my eyes.

"Just showing you how you used to be."

"Yeah, _riight_. You know, considering everything I'm doing, you could be a little more helpful."

"Hn. Sorry."

I blinked in surprise at the apology, no matter how curt.

"Thanks. Anyway, the only thing you probably would have to worry about would be churches and religious chants. Easy enough to avoid, eh?"

"I suppose." He shrugged again. "Is that the end of it?"

"Pretty much." I closed the book in my lap and put it atop the teetering stack next to my foot on the floor. I crossed my legs and beckoned for Sasuke to stop floating and sit down. He complied, sitting right across from me and looking so real that it was difficult for me to remember that he was a ghost. "Now that we've gotten that out of the way…I need to know. What is your bet?"

Sasuke was silent, deep in thought. For a moment I wondered if he was going to even bother to tell me or if I would be in the dark the whole time.

"…I can't tell you everything," he answered finally. "It's part of my deal that I can't tell you all of my conditions. But according to death, there were a few things that I was only just becoming aware of when I died…and my goal is to fully understand these things, and, absurd as it sounds, come to peace with them."

"What sort of things?" I asked.

He snorted. "I'm not entirely sure. As Death said, I was only just becoming aware of them. I have my ideas as to what they may be, but I'm not sure."

I suppose that I shouldn't have been so surprised that Sasuke both didn't know himself very well and still accepted that challenge regardless. But nevertheless that was my reaction, complete with eyes nearly popping out of my skull and jaw touching the ground.

"So let me get this straight. You bet your life on achieving these goals—_and you have no idea what they are?_"

"I have ideas," Sasuke repeated vaguely, tilting his head to one side, "and there's still a chance I might come back. No matter what you may think, it's better than no chance at all."

"I know, Sasuke-kun, I know. It's just," I struggled for the right words, "well, you know. I really want you to come back. And I'm scared that you, well, _won't_."

Scared that he would leave again. Scared to wake up and learn he was _gone_, like the last time. Scared that I might totally break down, and no one would understand. Despite all the light-hearted bickering and talk between us, I was serious when I promised to help him.

I almost (but not quite) love him.

He's my friend.

"I wouldn't have made that bet if I didn't think I would win, Sakura." I felt something barely touching the top of my head, and knew without looking that it was Sasuke's hand. "Trust me; I have every intention of getting my body back."

Hearing him sounding so sure made my mood lift, turn more optimistic.

"Of course you do." I looked up into his charcoal eyes, smiling a bit. "And besides, we have about six months, right?"

"Right," he confirmed, one corner of his mouth quirking up as he looked at me.

"That's plenty of time. We'll do it."

Speaking of time…

I looked at the clock sitting on the bedside table. It read as six fifty-six.

"Well, I better get down for dinner. Ino will be _ticked_ if I skip again." I got up from my bed and grabbed a sweater to pull on (the cafeteria did _not_ have the best heating system). "I'll be back in half an hour or something." I left the room without looking back at him.

If I had, I probably would've noticed him get off the bed, follow me down the hall and through the lunch line. Then I probably wouldn't have screamed and made Ino look at me as though I had rabies when I noticed him sitting besides me. Then I wouldn't have had to deal with him smirking the entire time I was eating, or with the screams of my 'Inner' to slap him, despite the fact I physically _couldn't_.

Really, no matter what he said about wanting to come back to life; he was having a little _too much_ fun being a ghost.

* * *

Eh, this chapter irks me quite a bit.

If anyone here likes parent!fics, I'd like it very much if you could read (and review) my story, _little embers_. I like where it's going and I really would like some feedback.

Review please!


	3. Already a Hassle

My only reasonable excuse for the lateness of this chapter is a combination of writer's block and school. Sophomore year was a bit of an unpleasant surprise, not just because of the workload, but both my parents are working this year and things have been a little…hectic.

I would love to say it won't happen again, but it might. However, the writer's block is gone and I swear that the next chapter, while it probably won't be speedy, won't take nearly so long.

* * *

**Second Order of Business: **Rules.

"We need to have a list of rules for both of us to stick to, to keep me from sounding like a loony, and for you to _behave_." Out of habit, I tried to tap his nose with my pencil. It just went through him. Other than a slight shudder, he gave no sign that he was affected. His legs were crossed and he was floating a few inches above my bed.

"Why would I need rules?" Sasuke managed to look very affronted, despite the silly-looking hovering.

"I don't trust you to control yourself. I do remember those little stunts you pulled with Naruto, you know." He looked a little smug as I said that.

"How can I pull those kinds of tricks when I'm _dead_?" He inquiring, still smirking.

"You said it yourself, you're more of a poltergeist, and poltergeists can move objects and touch people. You could probably create complete pandemonium if you could. Therefore, I'm not going to let you." I smirked at the irritated expression on his face.

"Exactly how are you going to do that?" He demanded.

"Same as whatever you did to me—a contract." I smirked even wider at the throbbing vein in Sasuke's temple; he wasn't happy.

"I didn't make you sign away your soul or anything; you do know that?"

"Yeah," I smiled sweetly at him.

"Then why do I need one?"

"Well, there's that tiny little thing about me having no idea _what_ that contract will make me do, considering I _didn't understand half of it_, so just think of this as balancing the scales."

"Hn." Ah, the standard answer. I had missed hearing that.

"Don't peek on any of the girls' locker rooms, showers, or any other place they might be undressing. That's voyeurism."

"Did you not hear me when I told you I wasn't Jiraiya?" One of his eyebrows was twitching. I studied it with interest.

"I heard you. And it doesn't matter." There is no way I'm about to trust _any_ teenage boy who knows that no one can see him and walks through walls to not take advantage of the fact.

"…Fine." He grumbled, crossing his arms and pouting. I almost laughed—he looked so cute—but kept myself in check.

"Good. Second rule: don't prank anyone just to freak them out or you're bored or _whatever_—don't do it."

He snorted. "Tch. The only person worth messing with is the dobe—"

"Naruto's already crazy enough, Sasuke-kun. He doesn't need you messing with his head to make things worse." I pulled a piece of paper out of my binder and began to write down my 'rules' on it. Despite the ghostliness, I could feel him glowering at me.

"Hn."

"I'll take that as a yes. Third…" I pursued my lips. "Well, I can't think of one, but when I do, you'll have to abide by it."

He rolled his eyes. "Of course." I gave him a frosty smile.

"Good, so sign right here." I pointed to the bottom of the paper, were a penciled-in signature line awaited signing.

"How?"

"You can pick up a pen, can't you?"

"…Yes. But—"

"No buts. Sign it."

"What's all this extra space for?"

"For the other rules I'll think up."

"Now _that's_ just cheating—"

"How's it cheating?"

"At least you knew what you were signing—"

"You didn't give me enough time to read the whole thing!"

"You didn't _try_ to read any of it. Don't blame me for your forgetfulness."

"Look, it's not like I'm going to add an extra thousand in tiny print or anything like that…"

"Then set a number."

"I dunno…about fifteen total?"

"Five. What do you need fifteen for?"

"It's you. Ten."

"Touché. Good enough, I'm not even going to bother you to ask. Number it."

"Huh?"

"Write down the numbers so that you can't squeeze anymore in. A contract with a ghost is a serious matter."

"More serious than one with a human? How do I know I didn't sell my _soul?_"

"_Sakura_—"

"It's a serious question!"

"No, it's stupid!"

"IT IS NOT—"

"Sakura?"

We froze.

"Shit, Ino!" I turned to Sasuke. "Hide, now!"

"_She_ can't see me. No."

"Why you—just do it!" I waved him away, and grudgingly, he sank to the floor below us. Once I had made sure to hide the papers I had been scribbling on (Ino already thought I was crazy, no need to confirm it with peculiar writings), I crossed the room and opened the door.

"What do you want, Ino-pig?" I asked, attempting to sound bored and casual, the way I usually do when she interrupts me.

She acted like she didn't hear me, scanning my room with a slight frown.

"Sakura, were you talking to someone?" She brushed past me and looked around, even looking out my window.

"No…no one was in here." I crossed my fingers, somewhat grateful that Sasuke is a very fastidious gjen—whatever. "I was probably thinking aloud again or something."

Ino doesn't believe me, I can tell by the way one of her eyebrows is raised just slightly higher than the other, asking me: _oh really_?

Then she just shrugs her shoulders. "Suit yourself. Do you have your math book with you? I left mine in the classroom; it's locked."

"Again?"

"Not my fault talking to Shikamaru is more interesting than making sure I have a homework source with me! Speaking of which, what _is_ the homework? I wasn't paying attention."

"Ino…"

"Don't 'Ino' me! You know hot guys are distracting, look what happened with Sasuke last year—" I flinched and she stopped abruptly. "Sorry." She said, looking a little ashamed.

"It's all right." I was honestly more concerned about whether or not Sasuke had heard than remembering his death. But I still felt a little twang in my chest.

"You sure?" she looked at me, clearly worried that she may have crossed a line. "Because really, that just sorta, slipped out—"

"I'm fine." I smiled at her, only forcing it slightly. "We do pages fifty and fifty-six, problems one to twenty on each one." I handed her the book that had been resting on my desk.

"Joy," she muttered, eying my textbook as though it was causing her a terrible mortal offence. "Well, I'll be off; maybe Shikamaru will be charitable and teach it to me."

"Don't count on it." I said, smiling.

"Leave the door unlocked."

"Will do."

"Bye." She left, looking relieved that I wasn't angry at her slip-up.

The second the door closed after her I sagged with relief, flopping down onto the floor. Ino was going to be a problem; I knew so yesterday

"Is the Yamanaka gone?" Sasuke's head popped out of the floor, right in front of me. I was very proud of myself; I didn't even flinch.

"She'll be back."

"Wonderful." He rolled his eyes and the rest of him appeared.

"Shut up, Sasuke-kun." Even I was surprised at my bad temper. Sasuke simply raised his eyebrows at me.

"Suit yourself." He turned to the contract, scowling. "Does it really matter if I sign it?"

"It'll make things official." I stared at the expression on his face curiously. It was similar to the one he wore that one time Tsunade-shishou had to give him a shot with a two-inch long needle. Not. Happy. "It's a piece of paper, what can it do to you?"

"You'll see." Still grimacing, he picked up a pen—

(Maybe he's part-poltergeist, as well as part gjen—whatever)

--and signed his name. I waited. Nothing happened.

But as he drew his hand away from the paper, a silvery impression remained. It hung in the air for a moment, before sinking into the inked lines Sasuke's impossibly neat signature.

"What was _that?_" I asked, flabbergasted, staring from the paper to Sasuke and back again.

Was it just me or was he paler?

Which is kind of stupid, considering he's a _ghost_.

"_That _would be the reason that 'selling your soul' isn't just an expression." He looked particularly grumpy.

"That was your soul?" Now I was curious.

"A small piece, I'll get it back eventually." He shrugged, as if losing a piece of soul was something so normal it wasn't even worth commenting on.

"Eventually?"

"It'll return to me once I—_we_," he corrected himself, "finish this little task."

"Then…what's the point of putting it in there?"

Sasuke scowled at me. "It's to ensure that I won't violate any of the rules you put down, so even if you write down something that you have no intention of having me follow through, I have to do it; no matter what."

"What does it do if you don't follow through?"

"Psychoelectric shocks."

"And what the fuck is _that_ exactly?"

"I can't explain it and would rather not demonstrate it."

"Maybe I should just forget about it then…" I said, snatching the paper up gingerly.

"No point."

"But won't it be painful?"

"Of course."

"Then shouldn't I—"

"I signed the stupid thing, just forget about it."

"…You know, if you didn't want to sign it in the first place, couldn't you just have _explained_ it to me?"

"…"

"Ellipses. Joy. So either you didn't think about it, or you have some terribly convoluted reason for doing it. Which one? Actually, you know what, I don't want an answer."

"Hn." Sasuke just glared at me.

-

There was one problem I didn't quite anticipate.

On Monday morning I woke up to my alarm, as usual. Sasuke was floating over my desk, apparently in some kind of stupor, opening his eyes the second I sat up.

"G'morning," I mumbled, swinging my feet to the ground, yawning. He didn't say anything, just nodded. I shivered a little (January, it's always freezing) and went to grab my uniform. Dutifully, Sasuke disappeared while I dressed, not wanting to violate his side of the deal.

"I'll be back…sometime," I told him as I gathered up my things after visiting the bathroom. "So stay in here, sneak around looking for Kakashi's special collection to read or something, but—"

"I'm coming with you."

"…Huh?"

"I want to see everyone."

"Why?"

"I just told you."

I scowled; honestly, did I come off as that dense? "Sasuke," I began, choosing to use a different approach, "What would be the point? I mean, if you don't have to listen to Kakashi, why would you want to? He's still reading his stuff in class and everything. Nothing's changed. And you've seen Naruto already, haven't you? I heard him screaming. Just stay here."

Sasuke ignored me and simply walked out the wall.

"Suit yourself." I said, even though he probably couldn't hear me. Just as well. I had to go haul Ino out of bed anyway. And after forty Kakashi homework problems, it'd be even more trouble than usual.

-

The classroom was, as usual, pretty crowded by the time Ino and I arrived. Everyone was hanging around, just talking or playing jokes on each other. Ino dumped her backpack by her desk and headed straight for Chouji and Shikamaru, the latter of whom was fast asleep and blissfully unaware. I wasn't hungry for chips or really in the mood to watch Shikamaru's torment, so I didn't follow.

Instead, I went over to Hinata's desk. She was reading, but looked up as I approached her and smiled at me.

"Good morning, Sakura-chan," she greeted me, putting her book away. Hinata's really pretty, with long black hair, pale skin and her eyes are this pale purple color. Her cousin Neji has it too; apparently it runs in the family. But Hinata's makes her look sweet, Neji just looks freaky.

"Yeah, but it's kind of cold." I replied. Hinata chuckled a little, but didn't say anything. Hinata and I haven't really been friends all that long. I only got to know her because she and Naruto started dating halfway through sophomore year.

Speaking of Naruto, where is that idiot? Usually he can't leave Hinata alone for two seconds.

"He's over by the window." Somehow, she knew what I was thinking. Hinata leaned closer to me. "He's been acting a little strange, today. Didn't even say good morning to anyone."

I frowned. That wasn't the Naruto I knew. "I'll remind him of his manners." I assured her, before taking my palms off the desk and heading straight for that dumbass.

I was surprised that I hadn't noticed him before. But then again, Naruto's almost never quiet, so I never really had to develop a radar for him the way I did for Sasuke, especially after I accidently sat on him that one time.

Note to self: do **not** bring up that incident under any circumstances. Purge it out of the mind.

"Hey moron!" I smacked him across the back of his head. "What, are you that stupid that you forget your friends?"

Naruto whipped around, one hand automatically going to rub his head, and the other held up defensively.

"Jeez, calm down Sakura-chan!" He laughed weakly. "No need to go ninja on me."

"What's wrong?" I asked, concern overriding irritation. Naruto didn't look that great. His skin was a little paler than usual and there were circles under his eyes.

"Nothing, Naruto just didn't sleep very well."

"Huh? Since when do you talk in third person?"

"I'm not." He smirked at me.

Naruto. Smirked.

Combined with what he said…

"I told you not to mess with him!" I hissed at Sasuke-in-Naruto's-Head.

"Hn. I'm not. He has no idea what's going on." He smirked. Again.

Damn.

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Anyway, reviews are appreciated doubly, for those of you who have stuck with this story.


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